Jeff, your point is well taken that people on both sides of the political aisle can and should do a better job of listening to each other and that this would be a better way to achieve goals that accomplish results reflective of shared values.
But a key ingredient of good listening is compassion and a true desire to understand the needs of the other human beings in the conversation.

While you have explained your facebook postings as simply being re-posts from other sites, the fact is that those re-posts show a total lack of compassion; in fact they venture far into the territory of classic bullying behavior.  Name calling, labeling, colorful insults and grouping of individuals into categories are all behaviors that are so destructive of effective communication and community participation that we begin teaching even our youngest children not to engage in them.

Your two plus decades of community service are commendable.  However, I can’t help but feel that the missing element at this point in time is care and concern for the individuals who make up the full spectrum of your constituency.

National politics, talk radio, internet & facebook groups are quite abstract. Getting to know the fellow human beings of Piedmont (PADC [Piedmont Appreciating Diversity Committee] is a great place to start) and building some friendships outside the realm of politics is a much more ‘real’ and useful approach for local leadership.  While there is no doubt that the national political arena creates absorbing, outrageous and even terrifying ideas to consider – our local community must put all that aside in our day to day lives. Local leadership is at its best when the focus is on the needs, cares and concerns of the individuals who make up our shared community, and through compassionate consideration of these concerns arrive at agreeable solutions to the problems at hand.

I hope you will find a way forward, possibly by remembering why you were drawn to public service in the first place, and hopefully by leaving toxic national politics out of the equation when it comes to local concerns.

Respectfully submitted,
Katie Korotzer

Editors Note: Opinions expressed are those of the author.

Read the statement by Mayor Jeff Wieler on his resignation by clicking below.

Wieler Statement 

Piedmont is no place for a RACIST and anti-LGBTQ mayor. Jeff Wieler’s political outbursts on social media show that he clearly has no regard for his diverse group of constituents. It sounds like Wieler needs to move to coal country where his anti-liberal hateful rhetoric will resonate amongst the uneducated.

UPDATE: The Special Council meeting of August 28, 2017  has been cancelled based on the August 27, 2017 resignation of Jeff Wieler as Mayor of Piedmont.  Wieler intends to remain on the Council as one of the 5 Piedmont City Councilmembers. Updated 8/28/2017

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On Monday, August 28, 2017, at 7:00 p.m., a Special Meeting of the Piedmont City Council will be held to consider the removal of Mayor Jeffrey Wieler from the Office of Mayor by Rescinding Resolution 105-16.

Mayor Wieler has come under considerable criticism based on his interaction with the general public and Piedmont citizens at meetings and on his Facebook site.  Wieler has been apologetic for his actions and remarks.

In Piedmont, the City Council elects the Mayor and Vice Mayor from the council members.  The Council can also remove the Mayor and Vice Mayor from these positions for they serve at the pleasure of the Council. It takes three Council members to elect or remove the Mayor or Vice Mayor.

The voter enacted Piedmont City Charter states:

SECTION 2.08 MAYOR

Following each general municipal election, the City Council shall elect from among its members officers of the City who shall have the titles of Mayor and Vice-Mayor, each of whom shall serve at the pleasure of the Council. The Mayor shall preside at meetings of the Council, shall be recognized as head of the City government for all ceremonial purposes and by the Governor for the purposes of military law, but shall have no administrative duties. The Vice-Mayor shall act as mayor during the absence or disability of the Mayor. In case of the temporary absence or disability of both the Mayor and Vice-Mayor, the Council shall select one of its members to serve as Mayor Pro Tempore. Emphasis added.

The Special Meeting is being called by at least 3 council members or by the Mayor per the City Charter, as follows:

SECTION 2.07 COUNCIL MEETINGS (A) MEETINGS. The City Council shall meet regularly at least twice in every month at such times and places as the Council may prescribe by ordinance or resolution. Special meetings may be held on the call of the Mayor or of three (3) or more members and, whenever practicable, upon no less than twenty-four (24) hours notice to each member. All meetings shall be public except as otherwise provided by law. Emphasis added.

As a Special Meeting only the item listed on the agenda can be considered during the meeting.  The agenda states:

 Consideration of the Removal of Jeffrey Wieler from the Office of Mayor by Rescinding Resolution 105-16 

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Resolution 105-16 RESOLVED, that the City Council elects Jeffrey Wieler to serve as Mayor of the City of Piedmont.

Moved by King, Seconded by Rood

Ayes: Cavenaugh, King, McBain, Rood, Wieler Noes: None         Absent: None

Under the rules, should Mayor Wieler be removed, Vice Mayor Bob McBain would assume the responsibilities of the Mayor. The City Charter states:

Vice-Mayor shall act as mayor during the absence or disability of the Mayor.

If the Council decides to remove and cause Mayor Wieler to vacate his position as Mayor, there is no place on this agenda to elect another Council member to the position of Mayor.

Recently, there was a vacancy, not an absence or disability, in the Mayor position when Mayor Margaret Fujioka resigned and vacated the City Council.  The Council did not follow the City Charter to elect a replacement, thereby allowing Jeff Wieler, the Vice Mayor, to be the Acting Mayor for months. There is no position in the City Charter known as the “Acting Mayor” for a vacated position. 

The Monday, August 28, 2017, Special Meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the  City Council Chambers, 120 Vista Avenue, Piedmont.  The public can speak to the agenda item.

There is no indication from the City if the meeting will be broadcast on Channel 27 or via the City website.

For further information, contact the City Clerk at 420-3040.

The Piedmonter and East Bay Times:

http://www.eastbaytimes.com/2017/08/22/piedmont-mayor-criticized-by-residents-for-his-facebook-comments-views/

sfist.com:

http://sfist.com/2017/08/24/piedmonts_mayor_in_trouble_over_rac.php

CBS TV Channel 5 coverage:

http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2017/08/23/piedmont-mayor-jeff-wieler-political-social-media-rants/

The Piedmont Post: 

On August 23, 2017, a headline in The Piedmont Post reads “Mayor Wieler issues statement condemning racism, violence.” The paragraph at the end of the article states, “A large number of people attended the Monday’s council meeting and some spoke about personal facebook posts Wieler made several days earlier.”

Mayor Wieler has been a long time columnist with Piedmont’s local newspaper, The Piedmont Post.

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Video of August 21, 2017 Piedmont Council Meeting  comments – 

To view the video of all comments made at the August 21, 2017 Piedmont City Council meeting, go to the City website at: http://piedmont.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=3&clip_id=1649

(Comments were made at the Council meeting in opening remarks and during the Public Forum, which followed the Consent Calendar.)

Piedmont Council member contact information:

http://www.ci.piedmont.ca.us/citycouncil/

Welsh also served as Acting Public Affairs Officer, working with local media and promoting democracy and economic development. In addition to his diplomatic service, he taught business classes at the local university.

In Norway, Mr. Welsh served as Deputy Consul, leading an office that processed visas and supported American citizens abroad. In that capacity, he worked with senior intelligence officials and represented the US government at cultural heritage and diplomatic events.

Prior to his diplomatic career, Mr. Welsh helped start a sports marketing agency for The Active Network, working with Fortune 500 companies to market amateur athletic events, teams, and leagues. Also, he served as a sales executive for IBM, where he earned President’s Club honors and graduated from IBM’s global sales school.

Mr. Welsh attended UC San Diego, where he was a four-year starter and All-American in water polo, and received an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management. In high school, he was an All-American in water polo at the Menlo School on the peninsula.

PHS Principal Adam Littlefield and MHS Principal Shannon Fierro coordinated the recruitment and selection process. Administrators, members of the PHS Athletic Boosters, coaching staff, the City of Piedmont’s Recreation Director, and several student athletes participated in the interviews.

“Joe has a wonderful balance of passion for sports and the strong business and management skills necessary to effectively lead our athletics department,” said MHS Principal Shannon Fierro. “He impressed the interview panel with his multi-faceted background and commitment to high school athletics.”

PHS Principal Adam Littlefield also commented, “Joe has demonstrated success in all his previous endeavors. His attitude, skills, and knowledge will serve as the foundation for great work at Piedmont High School.”

The District’s Director of Athletics is responsible for: recruiting, hiring, supervising, and evaluating 175 coaches; developing and overseeing the Athletic Department budget; monitoring student eligibility; serving as the school representative of the Western Alameda County Conference; partnering with the PHS Athletic Boosters; coordinating team schedules, transportation, equipment, and supplies for 49 teams; and ensuring a safe and supportive program for over 500 student athletes. The Director of Athletics, which is a full-time administrative position funded jointly by the District and the Piedmont Education Foundation, requires a coaching certification. The position was broadly advertised, and there were 25 applicants.

“Mr. Welsh is an excellent leader for our student-athletes, coaches, and Piedmont Community,” Superintendent Randall Booker commented. “I’m thrilled to have him part

of the team, and look forward to working with him as participation and interest in athletics continues to grow across Piedmont.”

Mr. Welsh will start in this position on September 5, 2017, at an annual salary of $91,687. As part of the transition to his new responsibilities as the Athletic Director, he will shift from Head Coach to Assistant Coach for the Varsity Girls’ Water Polo Team. Genievieve Weed, who was team captain for the Cal women’s team last year and is one of the best players in the country, will become Head Coach.

“Athletics is a vital experience in the lives of our high school students, and I’m highly motivated to make a positive difference in our student athletes’ lives,” Mr. Welsh said. “I look forward to partnering and collaborating with the extended Piedmont community to support our students, continue our proud athletic tradition and instill positive life values in our student athletes.”

*****

The Piedmont Unified School District is located in Piedmont, California, a city of approximately 11,000 residents in the San Francisco Bay Area. The outstanding staff provides a remarkable education and learning environment for all students. The residents of Piedmont demonstrate a strong sense of community and are committed to maintaining and enhancing educational programs, services and facilities.

Press Release Athletic Director 2017-18 Joe Welsh

– Remarks Prepared for 8/21/17 City Council Meeting

Thank you to Jennifer Smith Cavenaugh and Teddy Gray King for encouraging speakers at the August 21, 2017 Piedmont City Council Open Forum.

No one should have to show up at a City Council meeting to make sure their council members condemn the violence and hate that resulted in the deaths of two Virginia State troopers and a peaceful protestor as the direct result of racism, bigotry and hate. But there is a reason we are all here tonight. We all showed up because it is important to us to show moral leadership and speak unequivocally against the bigotry and hate that was on display in Virginia.

After I had commented that I found President Trump’s failure to denounce Nazis especially disturbing in light of the fact he has Jewish grandchildren, Mayor Wieler defended President Trump’s comments as adequate, arguing that the antifa protesters “picked a fight.”

An interesting point of view, despite the fact that Republican leaders, Business Leaders, Clergy and others expressed outrage at President Trump’s comparison of the behaviors of two opposing protest groups as equally wrong; Despite the fact that the messages of hate and bigotry advocated by White Supremacists, the KKK and the Alt right resulted in murder.

I am personally concerned that Mayor Wieler appears to judge the behavior of people who are actively trying to legitimize racial discrimination, people who carry signs and chant anti-Semitic, racist, and homophobic slurs with the behavior of counter protesters. There cannot be 2 sides. We can condemn those who champion violence and racial discrimination without conflating those who protest AGAINST discrimination.

Most importantly, I am here because Piedmont children are listening. I have encouraged Mayor Wieler to make a personal connection with the families he represents. Our children are seeing messages of hate across media screens.

There are children in our town who have recently been the victims of anti-Semitic jabs; there are children in our town who have been victims of racial bias and there is a current lawsuit against the city by a former police officer calling out incidents of racism.

Justifying the President’s pathetic response to the tragedy in Charlottesville has local repercussions on the well being of Piedmont families.

So when I asked Mayor Wieler if he would join City Councils across the United States sharing a moment of silence in observation of the tragedy in Charlottesville, he responded:

“As a moment of silence, I will stop engaging with you.”

He then referred to me as a “Lurid Partisan” and an “Irish Catholic claiming to be Miss Sensitivity.”

Which brings me to the second reason I am here tonight…

It is unacceptable for a nonpartisan mayor to express hatred for liberals. Mayor Wieler, you have a public FaceBook page and you post on it almost daily…often several posts a day. AND, you regularly represent Piedmont at Bay Area Conferences of local small town leaders. Allow me to suggest, YOUR IDEOLOGY DOES NOT REPRESENT PIEDMONT:
A small sampling of Mayor Wieler’s thoughts:

“The left burns buildings and deprives people of free speech and physically attacks conservatives. There’s a b***h named Falatco who led a gang that attacked a Trump rally in Berkeley.”

“Black Lives Matter encourages cop killing.”

“The Left is dangerous and un-American.”

“Transgenders are mentally ill.”

‘The left is Intellectually bankrupt.”

“Democrats are the plantation slave masters of today.” (article)

“Fight the leftie barbarians.”

“The tinfoil hat crowd of the left should be pitied because insanity is a terrible fate.”

“Some people hate Trump, but more people hate liberals.”

“The loonies of the resistance are worth a laugh, but not much more than that.”

Finally, I am here tonight to tell you, Mr. Mayor, when you threaten to use your friendship with the Editor of the hometown newspaper to denigrate those who would disagree with you, you have crossed a line.

You crossed a line when you threatened me and threaten people I care about with an “investigative story that I would not like.”  You abuse your power Mr. Mayor.

Piedmonters should hope for leaders who are open-minded, even tempered and emotionally stable.

Beyond that, Piedmonters should feel safe in knowing their small town mayor isn’t going to confer with the small town newspaper editor over lunch to invent ways to take down a member of the community with whom they disagree.

That is an abuse of power.

I would fully support this City Council in a decision to elevate Vice Mayor McBain to Mayor while allowing Jeff Wieler to quietly finish his term on the Council through November 2018.

by Conna McCarthy, Piedmont Resident

Editors Note: Opinions expressed are those of the author.

There will be a Special Meeting of the City Council to hold a “Work Session on Wireless Technology and Regulatory Framework”  in the Council Chambers on Monday, August 21 starting at 5:00 p.m. The meeting will include Telecom Law Firm on the regulations and technology of wireless facilities.

Crown Castle, the wireless company with an application considered by the City Council and the Planning Commission, will make a presentation at the Piedmont Community Center in Piedmont Main Park of their revised designs on August 29, 2017 at 6:30 p.m. The public can attend the presentation.

Broadcast of the Work Session may be broadcast.  The Crown Castle presentation is not expected to be broadcast.  For further information on broadcasting, contact the Piedmont City Clerk at 420-3040.

There is no available staff report on the wireless issues.

Individuals with questions on wireless installations should contact Planning Director, Kevin Jackson at 420-3050.

The following information was found in the draft minutes of the August 14, 2017 Planning Commission meeting.

“Wireless Communication Prior to adjournment, Planning Director Jackson announced that a wireless Facilities Update facilities study session is scheduled for August 21 from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. [This is an incorrect time schedule. The work session begins at 5:00 p.m.] in the Council Chambers. He stated that the meeting would include a presentation from Telecom Law Firm on the regulations and technology of wireless facilities, and that it is not specific to the Crown Castle applications. Planning Director Jackson also announced that Crown Castle would be presenting their revised designs on August 29 at 6:30 p.m. at the Community Center in Piedmont Park.”

Piedmonters are alerted to be aware of caregiver activities.

PRESS RELEASE

On June 5, 2017, the crime of Elder Fraud was committed within the City of Piedmont. The suspect, who was the victim’s caregiver for the past five months, persuaded the victim to write three checks to her in the total amount of $4,530.00. This was done against the victim’s will.
Extensive investigative follow-up, combined with evidence recovered from the victim’s bank account, led to the arrest of Dorgima Bambushew.

She was charged by the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office with three counts of Elder Fraud and one count of Burglary.

Bambushew is currently in custody awaiting further prosecution.

Anyone with information and/or inquiries related to this case is asked to please contact Detective Willie Wright at (510) 420-3013.